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The Importance of Motivation in Learning and Teaching Within a Psychological Discipline

There have been a number of studies of motivation, particularly in an academic environment, in recent years.  Motivation has also been studied in work environments.

Many also consider motivation to be an important aspect of both learning and teaching within the psychological disciplines. Applying the main theories of motivation to learning and teaching reinforces this, allowing motivation to be considered from both the learners' and the teachers' perspectives.

The word motivation is based on the Latin word that means movement (Steers, Mowday and Shapiro 2004, 379). Motivation is the process that makes a person choose a particular action over inaction or some other action. Pintrich and Schunk (1996) found a direct relationship between how motivated a person is and how much he or she achieves. In a learning or teaching situation, an individual who is motivated will try to complete a task and work hard to achieve success. A person who is not motivated will not try, will not work hard, or will bring in some other behaviour that sabotages the outcome of the situation (Eggen and Kauchak 1999, 400).

Psychology generally recognises three main theories of motivation in learning and teaching. Behaviourism supports the idea that man responds to external stimuli. This is built on a notion of motivation that has been around for hundreds of years, namely that a person will seek out pleasure but avoid pain (Steers, Mowday and Shapiro 2004, 380). Behaviourism expanded and developed this idea to explain actions based on reinforcement.

A person is motivated by past experiences where he or she was rewarded by certain behaviour (Skinner 1985, 292). Many experiments have been done on animals and people to demonstrate behaviourism as a learning theory. In a typical experiment, an animal will learn that pushing a button brings food.  The action of pushing the button is positively reinforced with food, so the animal repeats the behaviour. When a person repeats such an action over and over again with the same results, he or she develops an idea that links the button and food (Skinner 1985, 293). Behaviours are reinforced by positive results, whilst negative results cause the person to stop a behaviour.

In a psychological learning environment, the counsellor must often help the client discover the "button" that links an action and result in his or her mind.  Until such a motivator is discovered, the client will continue to repeat actions based on prior success or failure, even if the situation has changed.  For example, if a client had an undiagnosed learning disability that caused him to fail in school, he may associate any type of formal learning environment with his school failures and refuse to even try to learn.

He is not motivated. Chou et al (2004) supports this example, contending that learning difficulties and learning style trigger both motivation and increased learning capacity (300). To be motivated to try new learning experiences, the client must be assisted in discovering that he is not "stupid" or unable to learn, but simply needs to learn in a different way. The counsellor and client can then work together to devise some learning experiences where the client can succeed. According to behaviourist theory, as the number of positive reinforcements from an action (in this case learning something new) increases in relation to the number of negative experiences, the person's motivation will change to a more positive outlook (Eggen and Kauchak 1999, 399).

From a teaching environment, the teacher or counsellor is likely to repeat behaviours that have worked with other clients in the past. There is a danger in this as sometimes one can jump to assumptions about the client because he or she is like someone you worked with before. For example, a counsellor could assume that a client feels a certain way about a situation and direct the client based on that assumption, rather than letting the client explore and come to self-understanding.

The current client may actually be quite different, so the counsellor must work at understanding the client's ambivalence or motivational issues rather than simply measuring or recording them (Sparks, Harris and Lockwood 2004, 380). It is important to consider each person as an individual. Behaviourism also supports the idea that some counsellors will be less willing to try what may be a successful strategy with a client if they tried it once and it did not work. This can cause one to reject what would work well with a particular client.

Cognitive Theory

In contrast, is based on the need to understand, and the development of self-efficacy. Self-efficacy describes a person's belief in his or her own capability to successfully perform a given task (Chuiang, Liao and Tai 2005, 161). Bandura (1977) contends that through social learning theory it can be shown that high self-efficacy results in increased motivation.

"Those who are high in self-efficacy may achieve favorable outcomes of persistence, intensity, and direction, which are the psychological processing factors of motivation and thus they may be more motivated"(Chuiang, Liao and Tai 2005, 161-162). Gist (1987) similarly contended that people who feel efficacious are more likely to set high goals and persist in overcoming barriers. If a client knows he or she can successfully complete something, he or she will be more likely to undertake it.

There are several sub-theories of Cognitive Theory that also related to motivation, including expectancy and goal-setting theory. Expectancy theory sees behaviour as "purposeful, goal directed, and largely based on conscious intentions" (Steers, Mowday and Shapiro 2004, 382). People evaluate the different actions available to them in a given situation, then choose the one they believe will lead to the best outcome or reward.

From this standpoint, how attractive a task is or the reward attached to it will greatly influence a client's motivation (Eggen and Kauchak 1999, 402). For example, if the man with the learning disability used as an example earlier was promised a very high paying job for completing a learning experience, expectancy says he is more likely to undertake the experience than if there were no reward. This differs from Behaviourism because the reward or outcome is simply anticipated and not based on previous experience (Steers, Mowday and Shapiro 2004, 382).

With a learner situation, this theory of motivation leads the person in charge of the situation to often use rewards (or bribes, depending on your perspective) to motivate the learner. In primary school a child might receive a sticker or piece of candy if he or she successfully completes an assignment, for example.  In a counselling situation, the counsellor may negotiate a reward that the client provides to him or herself if significant progress is made.

Of more benefit to the client would be to attach success to an intrinsic reward (Eggen and Kauchak 1999, 403). For example, that the client records feeling more positive about his or her self-image is presented as a self-reward. A person who has regularly allowed others to violate boundaries in relationships may "reward" himself or herself with something they really want to do, rather than doing what others prefer.

As a teacher or counsellor, it is very important to follow through in any expectancy situation negotiated with the client. If the client is promised that he or she will be allowed to progress to the next stage of a process, for example, as a reward for work in the current stage, it is very important that the promise be kept.

It is also important that the counsellor maintain an expectancy of resolution or some other such attainment with clients. Our goal should be the point where the client no longer needs us, not to make the client dependent on counselling.  Presenting appropriate rewards or establishing likely and desirable outcomes is one way to assist clients in becoming motivated to learn.

Goal-setting theory is based on the idea that setting specific targets for behaviour, behavioural goals, will increase task performance and completion (Steers, Mowday and Shapiro 2004, 382). The more difficult the goal or the bigger it was, the less likely the person would be to begin or continue working on it. In contrast, if goals were broken down into specific, easy, and attainable steps, people were more likely to work toward their goals (Linnenbrink 2005, 198).

From a learning perspective, it is therefore important to plan out goals with clients, and break such goals down into achievable steps. For example, if a client is afraid of social situations yet wants to be able to go out and meet new people, the counsellor and client may work together to establish a series of progressively more social experiences. Each step would be documented with a corresponding time goal for completion. The client would work through the plan one step at a time. The theory contends that because the client can understand the high chance success for each step, he or she will behave self-efficaciously and be motivated to work towards the goal.

From a teaching standpoint, it is important to both help the client to establish realistic goals and break them down into specific, workable steps. The counsellor also provides a valuable role as a person of accountability, ensuring the client follows through. For example, the counsellor would ask in regular sessions how the client is progressing towards the goal.

If the client continues to come back without having done anything, and just wants to give excuses or complain, the counsellor could agree to meet again with the client only after he or she has completed a step towards a goal. This both motivates the client and prevents the counsellor from having the same session over and over, with the client not achieving any progress.

The last theory of motivation is the Humanistic theory. According to Humanistic psychologists, humans all seek fulfilling experiences where we can fulfil our full potential (Eggen and Kauchak 1999, 4043). People are motivated by internal desires, whether conscious or unconscious. As a learner, humanistic theory contends the client is motivated based on the desire to achieve some state rather than based on the behaviour itself (Muller and Louw 2004, 170). Instead of reacting to a specific behaviour reinforcement or taking action based on expected success, the learner here takes action because he or she wants to be someone different or maintain a positive self, and taking such action will allow the client to achieve this.

"The activities people pursue out of interest when they are free from the press of demands, constraints, and instrumentalities," those behaviours "associated with curiosity, exploration, spontaneity and interest," are those undertaken under humanistic motivation (Muller and Louw 2004, 170).  For example, a client may take up painting simply because she is interested in learning the subject, not from any other reasoning.

From a teaching standpoint, the practitioner of Humanistic theory is a caring, empathetic instructor who "considers the teaching-learning experience from the students' points of view" (Eggen and Kauchak 1999, 405). The counsellor in this model also considers the entire client, observing and addressing the physical, emotional, intellectual, interpersonal, and spiritual needs of the client. This is by far I feel the most effective method for motivating a client.

If the client can own his or her own desires and be motivated by them, this is far stronger than any outside reward or outcome in causing people to take action. As a counsellor, it is equally important that the person counselling is doing so from a genuine and healthy desire to assist others, not from some personal issues that are somehow fulfilled through their counselling role. The counsellor must themselves be emotionally and mentally healthy in order to properly assist clients.

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In conclusion

While all of the three major psychological theories of motivation produce results, the Humanistic theory is the most helpful in a psychological discipline. It emphasises the client achieving motivation from within, and for healthy self-oriented reasons. While it is arguably a more difficult way to encourage motivation in a client, it is yet more likely to be lasting and in their best interests.

REFERENCES

Astleitner, H. 2005. Principles of Effective Instruction - General Standards for Teachers and Instructional Designers. Journal of Instructional Psychology, Vol. 32, No. 1, pp. 3-8.

Bandura, A. 1977. Social learning theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Chou, M., Lin, M., Hsu, M., Wang, Y., Hu, H. 2004. Exploring the Self-Learning Experiences of Patients With Depression Participating in a Multimedia Education Program. Journal of Nursing Research, Vol. 12, No. 4, pp. 297–305.

Chuiang, A., Liao, W., Tai, W. 2005. An investigation of individual and contextual factors influencing training variables. Social Behavior and Personality, Vol. 33, No. 2, pp. 159-174.

Eggen, P., Kauchak, D. 1999. Educational Psychology. Columbus, OH:  Prentice-Hall.

Gisl, M.E. 1987. Self-efficacy: Implications for organizational behavior and human resource management.  Academy of Management Review, Vol. 12, pp. 472-485.

LePine, J., LePine, M., Jackson, C. 2004. Challenge and Hindrance Stress: Relationships With Exhaustion, Motivation to Learn, and Learning Performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 89, No. 5, pp. 883–891.

Linnenbrink, E.  2005. The Dilemma of Performance-Approach Goals: The Use of Multiple Goal Contexts to Promote Students' Motivation and Learning. Journal of Educational Psychology, Vol. 97, No. 2, pp. 197–213

Muller, F., Louw, J. 2004. Learning environment, motivation and interest: Perspectives on self-determination theory. South African Journal of Psychology, Vol. 34, No. 2, pp.169-190.

Pintrich, P., Schunk, D. 1996. Motivation in education:  Theory, research, and applications. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

 Skinner, B.F. 1985. Cognitive science and behaviourism. British Journal of Psychology, Vo. 76, pp. 291-301.

Sparks, P., Harris, P., Lockwood, N. 2004. Predictors and predictive effects of ambivalence. British Journal of Social Psychology, Vol. 43, pp. 371–383.

Steers, R., Mowday, R., Shapiro, D. 2004. The Future of Work Motivation Theory. Academy of Management Review, Vol. 29, No. 3, pp. 379–387.

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